Anna McMorrin MP: speeches 2026

Speeches

• 22 Apr 2026 · Defence Sector · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for the important work that her Committee does. Our Wales defence growth deal will drive innovation and create thousands of high-skilled jobs right across Wales. While the Opposition parties hollowed out and dismantled our armed forced for 14 years, play with Putin or plot to leave NATO, this Government are taking action and investing in defence, ensuring that Wales is leading the way on future defence technology.

• 22 Apr 2026 · Defence Sector · Hansard source

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  To be quite frank, the hypocrisy is astounding. It is—

• 22 Apr 2026 · Defence Sector · Hansard source

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  Again, the cheek of the Conservatives! They had 14 years in power, and what did they do? They hollowed out our armed forces and defences and failed to develop any proper plan for our defence industry. This Government are taking action, delivering the biggest sustained increase in spending since the cold war. We are working at pace to finalise our defence investment plan, ensuring that it is robust and supports the development of current and future capabilities. As opposed to the Conservatives in their 14 years in power, we are investing in our defence.

• 22 Apr 2026 · Defence Sector · Hansard source

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  I am incredulous that the hon. Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell) questions this Government’s commitment, given that the former leader of Reform in Wales, Nathan Gill, is serving 10 years in prison for accepting Russian bribes. I am sure that Gill will be cheering on his close friends in Reform from the comfort of his prison cell as we approach the Senedd elections. Meanwhile, this Labour Government are getting on with continuing to act in the national interest.

• 17 Mar 2026 · Draft Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022 (Consequential Amendments) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  I thank the shadow Minister for her valuable contribution to the debate this afternoon and members of the Committee for being here. This order provides for several consequential amendments to UK legislation necessary before the next phase of the 2022 Act comes into force in April. The shadow Minister made several points in her speech. I am very pleased that Wales managed to withstand 14 years of austerity from a Tory Government. More than that, the Welsh Government invested in building more 21st-century schools than anywhere else in the UK. Medr is shaping a tertiary education system in which everyone can acquire the skills and knowledge they need for a changing economy and society. The Welsh Government reflected and consulted on that—they consulted widely with tertiary education providers—and they are taking it forward. Medr was established last August and is looking at tangible improvements to raise standards across the board. That is why the 2022 Act is in place. Importantly, it will ensure that education, skills and apprenticeships are available for everyone, no matter what their background. I offer my thanks for the constructive manner in which the UK and the Welsh Governments have worked in preparing this order, and in which the shadow Minister made her points. I commend the order to the Committee. Question put and agreed to.

• 17 Mar 2026 · Draft Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022 (Consequential Amendments) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022 (Consequential Amendments) Order 2026. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mrs Harris. The draft order was laid before the House on 2 February. It will make changes to UK legislation that are necessary as a consequence of the Senedd’s Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022. The order must be enforced by 1 April to coincide with the Welsh Government’s commencement plan for the Act. The 2022 Act created a new statutory framework for publicly funded tertiary education and research in Wales. It established the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research—recently named Medr—which is responsible for funding and overseeing the tertiary education sector in Wales. The sector encompasses higher education, further education and training, apprenticeships, sixth forms and adult community learning. I will refer to that body as either the Commission or by its name, Medr. The Act provides the Commission with new powers to fund tertiary education in Wales and repeals corresponding functions that were previously in place. The order ensures that several pieces of UK legislation are kept up to date by making amendments that account for the new system introduced by the Senedd’s 2022 Act. The order mainly removes references to the powers that are now being repealed and replaces them with references to the equivalent powers in the 2022 Act. That ensures that the legislation being amended will continue to operate in largely the same way as it does now, but with the Commission integrated into the legislative framework. Article 2 of the order amends the Value Added Tax Act 1994 to ensure that education and vocational training provision funded through powers in the 2022 Act will be an exempt supply for the purpose of value added tax. The Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 includes provision for the tax treatment of income derived from shares in research institution spin-out companies. Article 3 ensures that the definition of “research institution” in that Act includes any university or other educational institution receiving funding under powers in the 2022 Act. Article 4 amends the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 to enable Welsh Ministers to exercise functions in the 2022 Act jointly with other public authorities, including the Office for Students and UK Research and Innovation. Article 5 amends the Charities Act 2011 (Principal Regulators of Exempt Charities) Regulations 2013 to designate the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research as the principal regulator for specific charities in Wales. That reflects the fact that the Commission—or Medr—will now be responsible for regulating further education and training in Wales under the 2022 Act, whereas previously Welsh Ministers were. The order also ensures that existing restrictions on principal charity regulators relating to the onward sharing of His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs information are applied to the Commission. Article 6 amends the Seafarers’ Wages Regulations 2024 to ensure that the apprenticeship rate for seafarers can apply to those carrying out apprenticeships funded by the Commission under powers in the 2022 Act. The amendments to UK legislation in the draft order fall outside the legislative competence of the Senedd as they relate to reserved matters such as tax, charities and employment. Taken together, those amendments ensure that existing legislation will continue to operate as intended by taking account of the changes made by the 2022 Act. I welcome the implementation of the Senedd’s Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act and the positive impact that Medr is already having in Wales. The draft order will make the consequential amendments necessary to keep UK legislation up to date, and it will help ensure that the 2022 Act can take effect as intended.

• 4 Mar 2026 · UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement · Hansard source

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  Our trade strategy is prioritising deals that deliver real impact for businesses right across Wales and the rest of the country. That is possible only because this Labour Government have achieved economic stability and repaired our reputation on the world stage after the Tories made a complete mockery of it.

• 4 Mar 2026 · UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement · Hansard source

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  The Secretary of State and I are working closely with Cabinet Office colleagues to ensure that Welsh farmers benefit from reduced costs and bureaucracy when exporting their produce to the EU.

• 4 Mar 2026 · UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement · Hansard source

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  I was at Aberystwyth University just a few weeks ago. Scientists there are doing some excellent work, and it is fantastic that they are leading the way on a vaccine for TB in cattle. I know how devastating the impact of TB can be on farms and cattle. We have begun negotiations with the EU on an SPS agreement. The hon. Gentleman would not expect me to comment on those negotiations, but I will raise his question and these issues with the relevant colleagues.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Child Poverty · Hansard source

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  This Government are completely serious about reducing child poverty. I am proud that we are a Government who are putting children first. Remember, the decision the Tories took was not about the policy; it was simply about politics. We are putting children first.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Child Poverty · Hansard source

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  Too many children are held back by the scourge of poverty, wilfully created by the Conservative party. Our new child poverty strategy will lift more than half a million children out of poverty by 2030 across the UK, delivering the largest expected reduction since records began. Removing the two-child limit will benefit thousands of children in Wales.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Child Poverty · Hansard source

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  I completely agree with my hon. Friend. It has and always will be children who pay the price for cruel policies, like those introduced under the Tories. I am proud that, as a Labour Government rooted in the values of fairness, we have scrapped the two-child limit, benefiting 69,000 children in Wales, and giving children their future back and hope for a better life. It is a surprise to no one that the Conservatives and Reform would reintroduce the cap and yet again plunge more children into poverty at a single stroke. Remember, their decision was never about work or saving money—

• 4 Mar 2026 · Cost of Living · Hansard source

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  We know that the cost of living is the No. 1 issue for people across the country and that is why we remain wholly committed to tackling it. As a result of our actions, interest rates have already been cut six times since the election, energy bills will be cheaper this spring and families getting a new mortgage are almost £1,400 a year better off than they were under the Tories.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Cost of Living · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is absolutely right. One of the most important things to this Labour Government is putting more money in the pockets of people across Wales and England. So far, we have increased the national minimum and living wages, giving a pay rise to 160,000 Welsh workers; we have announced the first ever permanent real-terms increase to universal credit, benefiting 320 households in Wales; and we have increased the state pension. A lot has been done and there is still a lot more to do—that is Labour delivering in government.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Cost of Living · Hansard source

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  I listened to what the hon. Member said, but I do not recognise what she says. This Government are listening to farmers and acting to ensure that they feel better off, which includes streamlining and reducing the burden on businesses and cutting costs.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Family Farms · Hansard source

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  This Labour Government are committed to supporting farms right across the country. I was with the new president of NFU Cymru, Abi Reader, just a few weeks ago in Wenvoe, hearing how family farms, including hers, will be protected. We will not apologise for being a listening Government, or for striking a fair balance between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances, which the Conservative party wrecked when it was in government.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Family Farms · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is making an important point. I am regularly out listening to farmers and speaking to farming unions, and I am proud that this Government are making the important trade deals that will make a big difference to farmers and businesses across our rural communities. That is possible only because this Labour Government have achieved economic stability, and have repaired our reputation on the world stage after, I am afraid, the Conservative party made a mess of it. I will continue to take his points back to colleagues across Government, and to have those negotiations and discussions with them.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Family Farms · Hansard source

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  Family farms play a crucial role in our economy, our landscape, and our language of Wales, and I have regular discussions with Ministers in Westminster and in the Welsh Government about how we can ensure ongoing support. I also regularly speak to farmers and farming unions, continuing to build a true partnership, and listen and respond to their needs.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Family Farms · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is a great advocate for farms in his constituency, and growing up in Pembrokeshire, I know that family farms are the backbone of our local community, as they are across Wales. That is why we are negotiating an agreement with the EU, our closest partner and biggest market. Working with the Welsh Government, we are ensuring that we are slashing red tape and cutting costs for businesses, and that remains a priority and central to this agreement.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Family Farms · Hansard source

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  This Labour Government have presided over the largest devolution settlement since records began—a settlement that has been used to provide £337 million of support to farmers right across Wales. I wonder whether the hon. Lady remembers that not only did the Welsh Conservatives votes against that support, but they introduced a motion to scrap the Welsh Government’s sustainable farming scheme. I thought that the Welsh Conservative slogan was “farming needs a friend”, but that does not sound very friendly to me.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Family Farms · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is absolutely right: we are a listening Government, and we have listened to farmers right across the country and made the necessary changes to protect them and fix our public finances, which were completely damaged and wrecked by the Conservative party. I commend her for her dedication and commitment to Wales as Chair of the Welsh Affairs Committee, and I look forward to continuing our work together.

• 21 Jan 2026 · Minority Language Broadcasting · Hansard source

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  Welsh language broadcasting plays a critical role in shaping Welsh identity and culture. S4C has played a vital role in helping to revitalise the language, and ensures that it is kept relevant among the ever-growing number of people who speak it, not just in Wales but around the world. Its essential contribution is reflected in the BBC charter review Green Paper, published just last month.

• 21 Jan 2026 · Minority Language Broadcasting · Hansard source

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  I think we are all glued to “The Traitors” this season. With the exodus from the Tory Benches to Reform, it is hard not to believe that we are living through a real-life “Traitors”. I thank my hon. Friend for his question. Welsh and Gaelic were the first languages of their nations, and have a strong social, cultural and economic significance. As a Welsh speaker, I know just how important that is. The Government recognise the contribution that MG Alba makes to the lives of Gaelic speakers across Scotland and the UK. My hon. Friend will be aware of the BBC charter review launched in December; it will consider how the BBC can best support minority languages, including Gaelic.

• 21 Jan 2026 · Minority Language Broadcasting · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member raises a very important point—one that I regularly discuss with S4C and my colleagues in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is fantastic news that last week, the BBC and S4C announced plans for a major new streaming partnership, giving greater prominence to S4C on iPlayer, but I know that there is more to do on this issue, and I will continue to work with my colleagues and broadcasters on this matter.

• 21 Jan 2026 · Minority Language Broadcasting · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for her question about the importance and sustainability of S4C, which is, crucially, reflected in the BBC charter review, launched in December. I will continue to have those conversations with my colleagues, both here and in the Welsh Government, and with the broadcasters.